User blog comment:Fankemonbricka162128/Top Ten Pokemon I Hate/@comment-32452525-20180202194000/@comment-32358261-20180206034628

Well pokemon want to capitalise on it’s obvious popularity. What little boy wouldn’t want their own fire breathing dragon (technically not a dragon but that’s beside the point)

Like if out of know where gamefreak chose to show off any random Pokémon like garbodor bcause why not. That probably wouldn’t sit too well.

You have to understand Pokémon wouldn’t be where it is now without ashes iconic pikachu, charizard, (insert popular Pokémon ash owned)

I highly doubt pikachu will ever get replaced. It covers all requirements like you said

-Cool and cute

-can stand upright to show more emotions

-yellow is a gender neutral colour

-doesn’t need to evolve via level up (this shows that it should be evolving but doesn’t to remain cute enough causing extra issues), trading (what sense does it make to trade away the Pokémon you love to evolve it), friendship (Pokémon should be happy but since it’s not evolving the Pokémon is sad forever). None of these are good images

Pikachu will forever be the mascot of Pokémon. If they tried introducing something new now it means replacing all pikachu related merch with other stuff. That would just kill Pokémon as a franchise